On Thursday, Horizon Air, part of the Alaska Air group, completed the withdrawal of its last Dash 8-400 turboprop. Aircraft registration N421QX performed flight QX2400 between Spokane and Seattle, where its maintenance base is located.
With this, the regional carrier now has an exclusive fleet of Embraer E175 jets, being yet another airline in the US to stop flying with turboprops.
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The Canadian aircraft was an important part of Horizon Air’s history, where it operated for 22 years, totaling 103 units between Dash 8-100, 8-200 and 8-400 models.
Founded in 1981, Horizon Air debuted with Farchild F-27 turboprops and five years later it was acquired by Alaska Airlines, however, maintaining its brand.
Only in 2010, the Alaska Air group decided not to keep Horizon as a separate airline, starting to display the livery of Alaska Airlines.
Currently, it operates 33 E175 jets, but plans are to reach 50 aircraft in the coming years. Alaska has just announced a project with Intelsat to equip all Embraer aircraft with Wi-Fi starting in 2024.
The presence of turboprops in air travel in the US has declined since the 1980s. Few companies are willing to offer flights with this type of aircraft, such as Silver Airways, from Florida, which operates with ATR 72 models.
